Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson (R) reacts to a tour around flood damaged areas in Livingston Parish a year removed from the Great Flood of 2016 during a press conference at the Livingston Parish News on August 14, 2017.

CONTENT HUB | Top 10 news stories of 2017

Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson (R) reacts to a tour around flood damaged areas in Livingston Parish a year removed from the Great Flood of 2016 during a press conference at the Livingston Parish News on August 14, 2017.

Despite having been allocated nearly $1.5 billion to help with recovery, very little of those dollars found their way to homeowners. By the end of 2017, roaring crowds who normally visited the Restore Louisiana Task Force (the group of politicians, business owners, and community leaders burdened with the "glorious purpose" of distributing said funds) meetings had dwindled, as ferocity and resolve had given way to exasperation and confusion.

Below, you will find the News' Restore LA Task Force coverage, starting from the most recent…

In August of 2017, just one year after the flood, Department of Housing and Urban Development director Dr. Ben Carson visited Livingston Parish, and gave a press conference at the News regarding the "red-tape recovery" the state was experiencing. Combined with other named storms lambasting Texas and Florida, Louisiana seemed doomed to be forgotten.

However, near the end of 2017 a light beamed from the end of the tunnel. Congressman Garret Graves scored a win by getting legislation passed that removed the "double benefit" clause that was causing so many people who needed aid to be removed by supposedly receiving benefits from other sources - including insurance, SBA loans, etc.

Not long after, the entire Louisiana delegation in Washington D.C. went big, and got to come home for Christmas with a success as the tax reform package passed just before the end of the year included tax breaks for those involved in the Great Flood of 2016.

How this will affect the task force's ability to distribute money remains to be seen, but with only 10% of the $1.5 billion being distributed after 18 months, the situation is expected to get better.

No. 2 - Denham Strong works to bring community desires to light

In the wake of the Great Flood of 2016, a small group of concerned citizens was presented an opportunity - a chance to steer the city of Denham Springs in a different direction. One that was less focused on growth, a little more growth, and then growth on top of that - but a controlled methodology that planned to turn the city into a more family-oriented place to live, as opposed to a "bedroom community."

It was a tough year for tax proposals, and that ran true in Livingston Parish as well as anywhere else. While millage renewals for the schools, and fire protection districts 5 and 8 passed (although with some resistance) the proposed drainage taxes failed.

LIVINGSTON – Voters renewed a property tax for the Livingston Parish school system that has …

No. 4 - Community college officially announced for Livingston Parish

This long and hard-fought project finally found itself with an official announcement, a land acquisition, and a timeline. Local politicians, members of the Livingston Economic Development Council, and members of the school board are pleased with the news as it opens up new avenues for education and workforce development.

BATON ROUGE – A scaled-down version of the gasoline/diesel tax proposal goes to House lawmak…

The premise was an extra 17 cent tax on gasoline at the pumps. That would go to fund a Department of Transportation and Development backlog that had grown to some $15 billion (almost 30 if you include "mega-projects," bridges, interstates, etc.)

Politics are always fascinating, especially when the subject is so divisive - and especially…

No. 7 - Comite Diversion saga ongoing

The News is sure you've heard of this one, but if you haven't - the Comite Diversion Canal is the sister waterway to the Amite River Diversion Canal in southern Livingston Parish. The premise has existed for almost the same amount of time, yet the Amite version has carried water for two more decades.

DENHAM SPRINGS – Congressman Garret Graves offered advice on how the Army Corp of Engineers …

Yes, residents in East Baton Rouge, Ascension, and Livingston parishes have paid a tax on this particular entity for almost three decades without a finished product. The culprit? Well, that's a long list.

The now infamous Comite Diversion Canal hit another snag last week, as an amendment proposed…

Not much has changed in 2017, however, other than the hope that perhaps the Restore Louisiana Task Force can lend a hand?

No. 8 - Legislature tries to tackle TOPS issues

TOPS has become a white elephant for the Louisiana legislature. While the program is lauded as a success for Louisiana residents and their children and offering a chance for secondary education - or, at least, some financial help to meet that goal.

Amid turmoil over funding, the Louisiana Legislature passed a resolution during the 2017 reg…

Unfortunately, higher education is one of the few places the legislature can go to make budget cuts - so TOPS always ends up in the cross hairs. While the program survived this year, Gov. John Bel Edwards has formed a task force to make suggestions at the 2018 legislative session about how to expand the program and make it more effective.

No. 9 - Despite flood, schools recovering and improving

The Livingston Parish School Board scrambled, found their footing, and kept on running.

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